Aydin
An Arabic given name meaning "enlightened" or "bright".
Name Census estimates that about 6,486 living Americans carry the first name Aydin. It is a predominantly male name (96.9% of registrations). The average person named Aydin today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Aydin births was 2008 (414 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Aydin. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Although Aydin is used almost entirely for boys, the SSA data does show 205 girls registered with the name since 1880.
- • Aydin is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 14 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
6.5K
~ 1 in 52,845 Americans
Peak year
2008
414 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,218
Tracked since 1984
Gender
Gender distribution for Aydin
Aydin leans heavily male at 96.9% of total registrations, but 205 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Aydin as a male name
- Ranked #1,218 in 2024
- 165 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2008 (393 births)
Aydin as a female name
- Ranked #13,684 in 2020
- 6 female births in 2020
- Peak: 2009 (22 births)
Popularity
Aydin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Aydin from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 3,126 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Aydin remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Aydin by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Aydin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Aydins live
The SSA's state-level files cover 36 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Aydin, while Mississippi, West Virginia, South Carolina recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 140 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Aydin
The name Aydin has its origins in the Turkish language and culture. It is derived from the Turkish word "aydin," which means "enlightened" or "luminous." The name is believed to have been in use since the early days of the Ottoman Empire, which ruled over parts of modern-day Turkey, the Balkans, and the Middle East from the 13th to the early 20th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Aydin can be found in the writings of the 13th-century Persian poet Rumi. In his famous work, the Masnavi, Rumi mentions an individual named Aydin, though little is known about this person's life or background.
Throughout the centuries, several notable figures have borne the name Aydin. One of the most prominent was Aydin Sayili (1913-1993), a renowned Turkish historian of science and philosophy. Sayili is best known for his groundbreaking work on the history of science in the Islamic world, which helped shed light on the important contributions made by Muslim scholars during the medieval period.
Another significant figure was Aydin Aritan (1932-2007), a Turkish politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey from 1983 to 1987. Aritan played a crucial role in shaping Turkey's foreign policy during a period of regional instability and was widely respected for his diplomatic skills.
In the field of literature, Aydin Hikremetler (1920-1987) was a prominent Turkish poet and novelist. His works explored themes of love, loss, and the human condition, and he is considered one of the most influential figures in modern Turkish literature.
Moving to the realm of sports, Aydin Yilmaz (born 1968) is a former Turkish professional basketball player who enjoyed a successful career in both Turkey and Europe. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Turkish basketball players of all time and was a key member of the Turkish national team for over a decade.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who have borne the name Aydin throughout history. The name's enduring popularity in Turkey and the Turkish diaspora is a testament to its rich cultural heritage and the positive connotations associated with its meaning of "enlightenment" and "luminosity."
People
Aydin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Aydin as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Aydin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Aydin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 6,486 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Aydin going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 52,845 US residents.
Is Aydin a common name?
We classify Aydin as "Rare". It ranks above 97% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6,545 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Aydin most popular?
The single biggest year for Aydin was 2008, when 414 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Aydin is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Aydin a male name?
Yes, 96.9% of people registered as Aydin in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.